Eolian sedimentation and soil development on moraine catenas of the Wind River Mountains, west central Wyoming

Eighty soils on thirty catenas were sampled on Pinedale and Temple Lake moraines throughout the piedmont, erosion surface and alpine regions of the Wind River Mountains, west-central Wyoming. Field and laboratory descriptions were performed on the soils at crest, backslope and kettle floor positions in order to describe the effect eolian sediments have on soil development in this region, and the source of the eolian material.; Grain-size data show net deposition of fine sediment occurs at all catena positions in all three geomorphic regions of the mountains. Soil development is moderate at moraine crest and backslopes; soils of depressions and kettle floors are more weakly developed. Soils on piedmont moraines generally are Mollisols where pH is higher than 5.5 and base saturation is greater than 50%. Soils on erosion surface and alpine moraines have lower pH and base saturation, and are mostly Inceptisols.; Kettle floors of piedmont moraines often exhibit buried soils. {dollar}sp{lcub}14{rcub}{dollar}C dates on two buried A horizons indicate they were buried between 7000 and 8500 RCYBP. The presence of the buried profiles suggests erosion stripped the upper horizons of soils on higher catena positions during this period. Thus, soils developed on piedmont catenas are often poly-genetic soils that result from a combination of erosion and mixed eolian/colluvial sedimentation since Pinedale time.; Heavy minerals isolated from silt and very fine sand fractions of soils and sediments of the region were examined for the presence of volcanic hornblende and zircon. Point-counting techniques show the volcanic minerals are distributed downwind along the mountain front (S-N) and with altitude into the range (W-E) from sources in the Green River and Bridger Formations of the Green River Basin.; Thus, grain size distribution and heavy mineral patterns are consistent with eolian distribution and indicate that eolian sedimentation is a continuing process in the genesis of soils on post-Pinedale and Holocene moraines in the Wind River Mountains.